Contiguous mattress system for adjustable base foundation

ABSTRACT

A mattress and mattress system for an adjustable base foundation configured to accommodate two mattresses in a side-by-side relationship and independently articulate each of the two mattresses. The mattress generally includes an edge zone about a perimeter of a selected one of the lateral sides, and a comfort zone. The edge zone can have a greater firmness level than the comfort zone. The mattress system includes two mattresses in a side-by-side relationship, wherein each mattress includes the edge zone about the perimeter of a selected one of the lateral sides, and a comfort zone. The mattresses are arranged on the adjustable base foundation such that the exterior facing lateral sides of each mattress are defined by the edge zone. The comfort zone includes the interior facing lateral sides.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/191,347, filed May 21, 2021, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure generally relates to mattress assemblies for use with adjustable base foundations. More particularly, the present disclosure is directed to mattress assemblies for adjustable base foundations that can accommodate two mattresses in a side-by-side configuration, wherein the adjustable base foundation is configured to independently adjust inclination and declination of each mattress provided thereon.

Individuals spend approximately one third of their lives sleeping. Sleep is therefore extremely important for people as there are many health benefits. It is important that individuals use a bedding system that provides the necessary environment for the best sleep.

Common mattress assemblies for adjustable base foundations configured to accommodate simultaneous use by two end users typically includes a single adjustable base or two adjustable base foundations coupled to each other with two separate mattresses thereon that can be independently adjusted. The two separate mattresses are placed next to one another on the adjustable base foundation in an abutting relationship to collectively create a single sleeping surface that can accommodate the simultaneous use for sleeping of two end users on each respective mattress, which is independently adjustable. For example, the two mattresses can approximate the size of a Queen mattress, King mattress, Super King mattress or any other sized mattresses that is configured to accommodate two end users. This also allows each sleeper to independently adjust foot and/or head elevation to their desired preferences.

Typical mattresses that are used for adjustable sleeping systems utilizing two mattresses in a side-by-side relationship are constructed with a central comfort zone that is peripherally and continuously surrounded by an edge zone, wherein the edge zone typically has a firmness that is greater than the comfort zone to allow ease of entry onto and exit from the bedding system, e.g., the edge zone is generally configured to prevent roll off when sitting at or lying in close proximity to the edge of the mattress. Inherent in this approach, the relationship of the two side-by-side mattresses results in a greater firmness medially extending from the head end to the foot end at about the point of abuttment of the two mattresses, which provides an undesirable feel in the middle of the bedding system to both end users due to the abutting two inner edge zones provided by the two separate mattresses that are used to create the relatively larger size. Further, mattresses and adjustable base foundations tend to not be secured in a unified way that would prevent the two mattresses from separating over time and creating a gap between the two mattresses.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Disclosed herein are mattresses and mattress systems for an adjustable base foundation dimensioned to accommodate and configured to independently articulate two mattresses in a side-by-side relationship on the adjustable base foundation.

In one embodiment, a mattress includes a head end; a foot end; a first lateral side extending from the head end to the foot end; a second lateral side extending from the head end to the foot end; a comfort zone having a first firmness level, wherein the comfort zone defines a primary sleeping surface for the mattress; and an edge zone having a second firmness level that is different than the first firmness level of the comfort zone, wherein the edge zone defines a perimeter of a selected one of the lateral sides.

In one embodiment, a mattress system for an adjustable base foundation configured to accommodate two mattresses in a side-by-side relationship and independently articulate each of the two mattresses, the mattress system including an adjustable foundation dimensioned to accommodate two mattresses thereon and configured to independently adjust one or more articulable sections corresponding to each of the two mattresses; and two mattresses disposed on the adjustable base foundation in a side-by-side relationship, wherein each of the two mattresses comprises a comfort zone having a first firmness and an edge zone at a perimeter thereof, the edge zone having a second firmness level that is different than the first firmness level of the comfort zone, wherein the edge zone defines the perimeter of an exterior facing lateral side for each of the two mattresses in the side-by-side relationship.

The disclosure may be understood more readily by reference to the following detailed description of the various features of the disclosure and the examples included therein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

Referring now to the figures wherein the like elements are numbered alike:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exploded view of a reversible topper layer for use with a mattress assembly in accordance with the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of a reversible mattress topper in accordance with the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of an exemplary single unit adjustable base foundation configured to accommodate two mattresses thereon in accordance with the present disclosure; and

FIG. 4 illustrates a perspective view of an exemplary dual unit adjustable base foundation configured to accommodate two mattresses thereon in accordance with the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Disclosed herein are mattresses configured for use with an adjustable base foundation dimensioned to accommodate two mattresses for multiple end users. The adjustable base foundation is not intended to be limited and can be a single unit or two abutting adjustable base units coupled to each other. The adjustable base foundation, whether formed from a single unit or two abutting units, is configured to provide independent articulation of each mattress. Each mattress generally includes an edge zone on one of the lateral sides extending from the head end to the foot end, i.e., the edge zone is not continuous about the entire perimeter of the individual mattress. The mattresses further include a comfort zone, which can have a different firmness than the edge zone. Typically, the edge zone has a firmness greater than that of the comfort zone so as to prevent roll off as described above. Each of the mattresses can be of the same construction or can be different depending on the end users' preferences. However, each mattress will have an edge zone provided on a selected one of the lateral mattress sides and not both of the lateral sides, wherein when two mattresses are placed on an articulating foundation, the edge zone is position to extend about the exterior facing lateral sides.

When in use, the two mattresses are closely positioned adjacent to one another onto the adjustable base foundation such that the edge zone provided by the abutment of both mattresses forms a continuous perimeter about the two mattresses or at least the exterior lateral sides of the abutting mattresses. The interior abutting lateral sides define a comfort zone and have a different firmness than the edge zones. Advantageously, the configuration and side-by-side positioning of the two mattresses on the adjustable base foundation provides a continuous firm edge zone on the edges of the abutting mattress and a comfort zone within a central interior region, thereby eliminating the increased medial firmness extending from the head end to the foot end that an end user normally encounters when two prior art mattresses are provided on an adjustable base foundation. As will be described in greater detail below, the two mattresses can be fixedly secured to the underlying adjustable foundation to prevent separation and formation of a gap along the midline of the two abutting mattresses.

Conventional techniques related to manufacturing processes for mattresses and adjustable foundations in general may or may not be described in detail herein. Moreover, the various tasks and process steps described herein can be incorporated into a more comprehensive procedure or process having additional steps or functionality not described in detail herein. In particular, various steps in the manufacture of mattress components such as the use of stitching, application of adhesives assembly steps, and the like are well known and so, in the interest of brevity, many conventional steps will only be mentioned briefly herein or will be omitted entirely without providing the well-known process details.

For the purposes of the description hereinafter, the terms “upper”, “lower”, “top”, “bottom”, “left,” and “right,” and derivatives thereof shall relate to the described structures, as they are oriented in the drawing figures. The same numbers in the various figures can refer to the same structural component or part thereof. Additionally, the articles “a” and “an” preceding an element or component are intended to be nonrestrictive regarding the number of instances (i.e. occurrences) of the element or component. Therefore, “a” or “an” should be read to include one or at least one, and the singular word form of the element or component also includes the plural unless the number is obviously meant to be singular.

Spatially relative terms, e.g., “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like, can be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures.

The following definitions and abbreviations are to be used for the interpretation of the claims and the specification. As used herein, the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” “having,” “contains” or “containing,” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a composition, a mixture, process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements but can include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such composition, mixture, process, method, article, or apparatus.

As used herein, the term “about” modifying the quantity of an ingredient, component, or reactant of the invention employed refers to variation in the numerical quantity that can occur, for example, through typical measuring and liquid handling procedures used for making concentrates or solutions. Furthermore, variation can occur from inadvertent error in measuring procedures, differences in the manufacture, source, or purity of the ingredients employed to make the compositions or carry out the methods, and the like.

It will also be understood that when an element, such as a layer, region, or substrate is referred to as being “on” or “over” another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements can also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on” or “directly over” another element, there are no intervening elements present, and the element is in contact with another element.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, there are depicted a top down and a perspective view of a mattress system 10 suitable for use in the present disclosure with an adjustable base foundation dimensioned to accommodate two users. The mattress system includes two contiguously positioned mattresses 12, 14, wherein the two mattresses in the top-down view are shown separated by a gap that would not be present when in use, i.e., the two mattresses would abut each other in a side-by side relationship as shown in FIG. 2. Each mattress includes a head end (H), a foot end (F), and lateral sides (S₁, S₂) extending from the head end to the foot end. Each mattress 12, 14 further includes an edge zone 16 and a comfort zone 18. The edge zone 16 is provided about a portion of a perimeter of each mattress, and at a minimum, only extends along a selected one of the lateral sides 14. In one or more embodiments, the edge zone 16 only extends on the selected one lateral side (S₁ or S₂) and a foot end (F) or head end (H), and in still other embodiments, the edge zone 16 extends on the one lateral side (S₁ or S₂), the head end (H), and the foot end (F). The two mattresses 12, 14 are positioned such that the edge zones 16 provided on the lateral sides as described above are exterior facing. In this manner, the edge zone 16 is provided at least on both exterior facing lateral sides (S₁) of the contiguously positioned mattress assembly. The interior facing lateral sides (S₂) are devoid of an edge zone and can have a firmness similar to that of the comfort zone 18.

The edge zone 16 can be formed of foam, coils, combinations thereof, or the like. The edge zone 16 has a height that approximates the overall mattress height and can have a width of about 2 inches to about 10 inches. The edge zone 16 can have a firmness greater than that of the comfort zone 18.

The firmness of the foam edge zones, also referred to as the indention load deflection. (ILD) or indention force deflection (IFD), is within a range of about 35 to about 100 pounds-force, wherein the hardness is measured in accordance with ASTM D-3574. In one embodiment, the firmness is about 45 to about 90 pounds-force; and specifically about 50 to about 75 pounds-force. The edge zone may be fastened to the comfort zone portion of the mattresses via adhesives, thermal bonding, or mechanical fasteners. The resulting edge zone 16 and comfort zone 18 of each mattress can be encapsulated within a fabric covering.

The comfort zone 18 can be comprised of conventional helical or semi-helical coil springs and/or foam known as used in the art today. The coil springs may be open or encased in a fabric material, either individually in pockets, in groups, or in strings joined by fabric, all of which are well-known in the bedding art. For many years, one form of spring assembly construction has been known as Marshall Construction. In a Marshall Construction, individual wire coils are each encapsulated in fabric pockets and attached together in strings Which are arranged to form a closely packed array of coils in the general size of the mattress. Examples of such construction are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 685,160, 4,234,983, 4,234,984, 4,439,977, 4,451,946, 4,523,344, 4,578.834, 5,016,305 and 5,621,935, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Alternatively, the comfort zone may be formed of foam or a combination of foam and coils springs. The foam, in some embodiments, can be a monolithic block of a single type of resilient foam selected from foams having a range of densities (themselves well-known in the art) or multiple foam layers for supporting each respective end user during sleep. in one embodiment, the foam is made of any industry-standard natural and/or synthetic foams, such as (but not limited to) latex, polyurethane, viscoelastic, or other foam products commonly known and used in the bedding and seating arts typically having a density of 1.5 to 1.9 lb/ft³ and a firmness level of about 20 to about 35 pounds-force ILD. Although a specific foam composition is described, those skilled in the art will realize that foam compositions other than one having this specific density and ILD can be used. For example, foams of various types, densities, and ILDs may be desirable in order to provide a range of comfort parameters to the buyer.

In an alternative embodiment, the foam may include one or more horizontal layers of multiple types of foams arranged in a sandwich arrangement. This sandwich of different foams, laminated together, may be substituted for a homogeneous foam block of a single density and/or ILD.

In a further embodiment, the foam may comprise one or more vertical regions of different foam compositions (including vertical regions having multiple horizontal layers), where the different foams are arranged to provide different amounts of support (also referred to as “firmness” in the art) in different regions of the sleeping surface. Accordingly, the comfort zone 18 in the present disclosure is not limited to any particular type of foam density or ILD or even to a homogenous density/ILD throughout the foam core.

Still further, the comfort zone 18 may comprise one or more air bladders by themselves or in combination with coil springs, foam, or combinations thereof.

Each mattress further includes a retention system to fixedly position each respective mattress on the adjustable base foundation. In one or more embodiments, the retention system is on a respective bottom surface and attaches to a surface of the adjustable base foundation such that when in use the mattresses remain in an abutting relationship, i.e., no gap is formed during use of the mattresses and/or the adjustable base foundation. By way of example, a strap or hook and loop fastener or the like can be disposed on the bottom surface of each mattress that is fixedly secured to a corresponding hook and loop fastener on the underlying surface of the adjustable base foundation.

As noted above, the adjustable base foundations are not intended to be limited and can be a single unit or two units coupled together. An exemplary single unit adjustable base foundation configured for use with two mattresses is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 10,285,508 to Rose et al. entitled Adjustable Bed System with Split Head and Split Foot Configuration”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary single unit adjustable base foundation 30, which includes two mattresses 32, 34 disposed thereon. The illustrated adjustable base foundation includes one or more articulable sections underlying each mattress so that articulating movement of one or more sections can be used to independently adjust each mattress as is generally well known in the art.

An exemplary dual unit adjustable base foundation is disclosed in US Pat. Pub. No. 2020/0121092 to Kramer et al. entitled, “Split Adjustable Mattress foundation for Multiple Users”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary dual unit adjustable base foundation 40. As shown, the adjustable base foundation includes two separate units 42, 44 that can be coupled to one another using leg retainers 46. Each unit includes one or more articulable sections that can be independently operated. Two mattresses (not shown) in accordance with the present disclosure can be provided on the dual unit adjustable base foundation 40 so that articulating movement of one or more sections can be used to independently adjust each mattress in manner generally well known in the art

This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use the invention. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal languages of the claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A mattress comprising: a head end; a foot end; a first lateral side extending from the head end to the foot end; a second lateral side extending from the head end to the foot end; a comfort zone having a first firmness level, wherein the comfort zone defines a primary sleeping surface for the mattress; and an edge zone having a second firmness level that is different than the first firmness level of the comfort zone, wherein the edge zone defines a perimeter of a selected one of the lateral sides.
 2. The mattress of claim 1, further comprising a retention system extending from a bottom surface thereof configured to fixedly attach the mattress to an underlying base foundation.
 3. The mattress of claim 1, wherein the underlying base foundation is an adjustable base foundation with one or more articulable sections.
 4. The mattress of claim 1, wherein the second firmness level of the edge zone is greater than the first firmness level of the comfort zone.
 5. The mattress of claim 1, wherein the first firmness level of the comfort zone is about 20 to about 35 pounds-force and the second first firmness level of the edge zone is about 45 to about 90 pounds-force.
 6. The mattress of claim 1, wherein the edge zone has a width from about 2 inches to about 10 inches.
 7. The mattress of claim 1, wherein the edge zone defines a perimeter of only a selected one of the lateral sides, a head end, and a foot end.
 8. The mattress of claim 1, wherein the edge zone defines a perimeter of only a selected one of the lateral sides, and a selected one of a head end and a foot end.
 9. The mattress of claim 1, wherein the comfort zone comprises foam, coil springs, or a combination thereof.
 10. The mattress of claim 1, wherein the edge zone comprises a fill material comprising foam, coil springs or a combination thereof.
 11. The mattress of claim 2, wherein the retention system is configured to couple the mattress to a non-articulable section of a base foundation.
 12. A mattress system for an adjustable base foundation configured to accommodate two mattresses in a side-by-side relationship and independently articulate each of the two mattresses, the mattress system comprising: an adjustable foundation dimensioned to accommodate two mattresses thereon and configured to independently adjust one or more articulable sections corresponding to each of the two mattresses; and two mattresses disposed on the adjustable base foundation in a side-by-side relationship, wherein each of the two mattresses comprises a comfort zone having a first firmness and an edge zone at a perimeter thereof having a second firmness level that is different than the first firmness level of the comfort zone, wherein the edge zone defines the perimeter of only an exterior facing lateral side for each of the two mattresses in the side-by-side relationship.
 13. The mattress system of claim 12, wherein the edge zone further defines a perimeter of a head end and/or a foot end of each mattress in addition to the exterior facing lateral side.
 14. The mattress system of claim 12, wherein each of the two mattresses further comprises a retention system extending from a respective bottom surface thereof configured to fixedly attach each of the two mattresses to an underlying base foundation and prevent separation of the two mattresses during use thereof.
 15. The mattress system of claim 12, wherein the adjustable base foundation comprises two adjustable base foundations coupled to each together.
 16. The mattress system of claim 12, wherein the comfort zone has a first firmness level of about 20 to about 35 pounds-force and the edge zone has a second first firmness level of about 45 to about 90 pounds-force.
 17. The mattress system of claim 12, wherein the edge zone forms a continuous perimeter about the two mattresses when in the side-by-relationship. 